Spice and Warforged/Pantheon
As society marches on, religion has become less prevalent in the Confederacy. Even so, history is peppered with incidents that could only be explained by divine intervention (or some other form of supermortal magic), so most individuals believe in some subset of the gods. Melindros, The Giver Usually depicted as a wise, smiling gnome, Melindros is the god of charity and philanthropy. His church is possibly of dwarven or gnomish origin, but has since spread to encompass all races, preaching love, self-sacrifice, and "paying it forward" to all. The more cynical will note that Melindros never seems to intervene and help any of the impoverished Himself — but the concept of charity does not need a physical form to make a difference. Melindros is aspected to Wisdom and Good. Lucia, Judgment's Light There are many myths surrounding the goddess of wrath, vengeance, and punishment, Lucia, most of which agree only on a few things: She was born to an unfaithful king and his hellish concubine; Her mortal caregivers abused Her; She eventually lost her mind and murdered all her loved ones, before laying waste to the gods Themselves in the Divine War and taking Her true place among them. Some versions of the legend end here, while others claim She was struck from the heavens by a band of brave heroes. Whether She still reigns from on high or has been cast into the inferno, Lucia is the most popular goddess among the most bitter members of society. Her cult, a stark contrast to Melindros' church, preaches anger and destruction, and actively recruits from the marginalized. Most governments fear the cult of Lucia, worrying that one day they will violently turn on their oppressors, but tolerate it out of vague belief in "freedom of religion" (or perhaps out of fear that they are outnumbered). That hatred of oppressive government is an important part of Lucia's cult -- furnished further by Frederick Guardian Gyro's order to execute Lucia's worshipers en masses at the end of the Divine War, a crime that they have remembered for centuries. Lucia is aspected to Charisma. Traditionally she is also aspected to Evil, but her most marginalized worshipers, who view her more sympathetically, aspect her to Chaos. Pamant, Nature's Beauty (or Tarrasque, Nature's Horrors) Pamant is one of the three oldest gods, a gorgeous elven maiden who was originally considered the patron of Insuia (and to a lesser extent Thelalia) and the embodiment of nature and agriculture. Among myriad other duties, Pamant is believed to control the climate, the seas, and beasts. But nature is not always so loving, and Pamant is also believed to take a second form — Tarrasque, a terrible beast which rose to supremacy over the other two old gods (the "Gods of Iron") and slaughtered droves of mortal sinners (who answered to their own greed and lust, the "Gods of Gold") in a great storm and fire that remade the world in the Insuian creation myth. According to certain versions of the Lucia myth, Pamant was slain by the upstart goddess in the Divine War, after conjuring a blizzard which lasted for months to fend Her off. Due to Insuia's decline in power, Pamant is no longer widely worshiped, save among particularly conservative Insuians and Thelalians (especially elves). They preach tradition and agrarianism, and have been accused of being rather misogynistic for their rather archaic views on dress and sexuality. As Pamant, she is aspected to Wisdom and Chaos. As Tarrasque, she is aspected to Strength, but still Chaos. Migalo, The Crimson Waltz Migalo is one of the Gods of Iron, a wizened human (or half-orc?) general and the patron saint of Spanos. To this war god, combat is just a dance; and his power was once believed to be derived from the might of the armies of the Empire of Ascalon, when such forces existed. Along with oversight of strength and war, Migalo is believed to oversee the administration of justice; He also has an army of demons, from type I (vrocks) to type VI (balrogs) at his command, which can be summoned into combat by His faithful. Pamant's worshipers believe that He fell from dominance in the great storm and fire, while Lucia's believe that He sacrificed himself in the Divine War. Migalo's faithful are most common among the military personnel of the Confederacy. They preach the importance of strength and determination above all else. They also believe that He was the glorious victor of the Divine War, who liberated the realms from Lucia's following and slew Her in battle. A reawakening in Migalo's faith occurred after the Divine War, as a result of this. Migalo is aspected to Dexterity and Law. Helix, The Spiral of Science Many a fraudster claims supermortality via descent from the Spiral of Science, Helix, who fell in love with the "queen of knowledge", the first Queen of Gyro, in the Gyran creation myth. In reality, only though of an Aasimari bloodline can even hope to claim such a thing, but even then such claims are questionable. (The most notable Aasimari families are the Gyran royal family and the descendants of the infamous Divine War-era mage, Cafca, whose line includes the likes of the senator and general, Aldous Hux.) After the death of the mortal Queen, the myth claims, Helix sealed himself away in her crypt to stand vigil for centuries, and was forgotten by the living. Helix also has the dubious honor of being slain in three distinct myths: first He was smote down by Pamant in the storm and fire as one of the Gods of Iron; then he committed suicide in some variants of the Gyran creation myth after the death of his Queen; then he was slain once more by Lucia in the Divine War. Thanks to Gyro's rise to prominence in the wake of the Divine War, Helix has been remembered again, and is worshiped by scholars across the Confederacy, as well as most Warforged and Aasimari, who view Him as their creator. Helix is aspected to Intelligence and Law. Jantar, the Light's Philosopher Primarily worshiped in Poetsbane, Jantar is a minor deity (sometimes depicted as a cherubim) who embodies society, law, wealth, and mathematics. In the wake of Helix's remembrance, Jantar has largely been forgotten. Jantar is aspected to Charisma and Law. Armal, the Eternal Armal is a minor deity and the embodiment of flame, the lord of metallurgy, and the master of love and passion. He is worshiped near Ozymandias and in the surrounding desert and otherwise largely forgotten. Many simply consider him a heresy on Pamant. Armal is aspected to Constitution and Chaos. Tiamat, The Dragon Queen The least worshiped of the gods, Tiamat is barely even recognized as divine outside of conservative kobold, draconic, and dragonborn circles. A cruel mistress, Tiamat demands sacrifices obtained through violence, not only to herself, but to the world's population of dragons, who are her brood. At this point, belief in Tiamat is scarcely more than an excuse for bigotry and looting: if one is carrying out divine will, then even atrocities are easy to justify. Tiamat is aspected to Strength and Evil.